As the sun set over the Arabian Peninsula, Max Verstappen's coronation as a three-time world champion felt imminent. The twenty drivers set off on the 19-lap sprint race that was full of safety cars and exciting racing. Yet, the moment Verstappen officially secured his championship proved fairly anti-climactic.
©Red Bull Racing, via Instagram
Oscar Paistri had a good getaway holding on to the P1 while Lando Norris in P2 and Max Verstappen in P3 both lost their positions to George Russell and the two Ferrari cars of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc.
It was a somewhat chaotic start to the Sprint Race in Qatar as already on lap 1, turn 2, Liam Lawson had lost control and ended up in the gravel, bringing out the first safety car of the evening. Only two laps later, Logan Sargeant followed in his steps and brought out the safety car number two.
For the second safety car restart, it was already George Russell defending the lead as the gloriously overtook Oscar Piastri a few moments earlier on lap 3. Singing his own praises.
On Lap 11, Nico Hulkenberg was sandwiched between Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon who came across. All three retired and brought out yet another safety car.
With Sergio Perez retiring, Max Verstappen officially became a three-time world Champion.
Oscar Piastri took the sprint victory as all the soft runners, including George Russell and the two Ferraris, tumbled down the order.
Lewis Hamilton rectified some of the damage of Sprint Shootout and finished P6, etching closer to P2 in the championship standings currently occupied by Sergio Perez.
Safety cars aside, the precious few laps of competitive racing we got to enjoy were a promising preview for Sunday's Grand Prix. Tomorrow, we'll once again gather to witness these modern-day gladiators battle it out on track and we can't help but feel the excitement building for what promises to be an unforgettable race.
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